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We scheduled a full day for buffing. I estimated around 11 hours of work needed. In hindsight a second day really could have been utilized.
Day #2
Start Time: 8:30AM
Finish Time: 8:45PM
1 Hour Break for son's Christmas party at daycare
Products:
STEP 1
Wheel Brightener
NXT Car Wash
Endurance High Gloss
STEP 2
Quik Clay System
STEP 3
Makita Rotary Buffer 9227c with Meguiar's backing plate and foam pads
M80 Speed Glaze
G-100 PC
6" Yellow Foam Pad
6" Burgundy Foam Pad
6" Tan Foam Pad
Microfiber Bonnets
Supreme Shine Microfiber
High Tech Applicator Pad
ScratchX
STEP 4
M21
STEP 5
Tire & Trim Dressing Gel
M39 Heavy Duty Vinyl Cleaner
Vinyl & Rubber Cleaner/Conditioner
NXT Glass Cleaner
NXT All Metal Polysh
It's a great looking car. My initial inspection showed a lot of potential issues. Sharp body lines and high points meant rotary work had to be taken with extreme care. Deterioriating rubber seals and a door that doesn't close fully meant that consideration had to be made to prevent water from entering these cracks. Chrome was oxidized, so that would need to be treated. Wheels were delicate--painted areas were flaking. All top surfaces were hazed and cloudy. Side panels were in better condition, but swirled. Vinyl top would need cleaning and treating as well. Interior needed vacuuming. So I made a mental checklist and prioritized them putting painted surfaces as highest, chrome second, interior as last. However, sitting in a clean environment--clean glass, clean carpet, and clean seats really improves the overall experience, so I made notes to do that as a minimum.
The day was just about perfect for working. Cloudy and overcast.
I gently watered down the finish with my pressure washer on low. If you'll note, I normally would tape off a car AFTER it's been washed, but in this case, there were lots of areas I didn't want water to be, so I used the tape to seal them off. In hindsight, a cloth bed sheet may have been a better solution. The tape worked well, but lost it's tackiness, not to mention held some water.
I sprayed on the NXT Car Wash on low
The front wheels were dirty, so some Wheel Brightener from the Detail Line solved that pretty easily. Ignore the sprayer bottle (APC), it's the correct product in the wrong sprayer bottle.
A couple quick blasts of water and you can see the results
Now they are sparkling
Here I am with my Makita
Progress being made. It was a lot of delicate work.
Notice the right side (left in this pic) is gradually getting glossier.
More Glossy
Ok Break time. By this time--11:30, I'd been buffing for 2-1/2 hours.
Started again at 12:30.
Arms were kinda tired, so I moved on to the side panels and saw these defects.
A little buffing later with the rotary. The green metallic flake is very visible here.
I went around the car, then back to the hood
From my mental checklist, I wanted to make the Chrome pop. The wheels were rusted, so I decided to claybar them, then use NXT Metal Polysh.
Sprayed some Quik Detailer for lubricant
Clay was effective at removing rust
M39 Heavy Duty Vinyl Cleaner worked great on the vinyl top. A nylon brush helped remove splatter residue from the rotary. Just make sure to keep M39 away from any waxed surfaces!
Nice reflective shot
Around 5:30PM Gerry stopped by to look at his car, and he actually joined me in finishing it up until about 8:45pm. We used ScratchX on a foam applicator pad to get all the areas that were too risky to do by machine. This worked great to remove any haze that couldn't be removed. This was topped off with M21 with a tan polishing pad and the PC.
Day Pix are coming....
Day #2
Start Time: 8:30AM
Finish Time: 8:45PM
1 Hour Break for son's Christmas party at daycare
Products:
STEP 1
Wheel Brightener
NXT Car Wash
Endurance High Gloss
STEP 2
Quik Clay System
STEP 3
Makita Rotary Buffer 9227c with Meguiar's backing plate and foam pads
M80 Speed Glaze
G-100 PC
6" Yellow Foam Pad
6" Burgundy Foam Pad
6" Tan Foam Pad
Microfiber Bonnets
Supreme Shine Microfiber
High Tech Applicator Pad
ScratchX
STEP 4
M21
STEP 5
Tire & Trim Dressing Gel
M39 Heavy Duty Vinyl Cleaner
Vinyl & Rubber Cleaner/Conditioner
NXT Glass Cleaner
NXT All Metal Polysh
It's a great looking car. My initial inspection showed a lot of potential issues. Sharp body lines and high points meant rotary work had to be taken with extreme care. Deterioriating rubber seals and a door that doesn't close fully meant that consideration had to be made to prevent water from entering these cracks. Chrome was oxidized, so that would need to be treated. Wheels were delicate--painted areas were flaking. All top surfaces were hazed and cloudy. Side panels were in better condition, but swirled. Vinyl top would need cleaning and treating as well. Interior needed vacuuming. So I made a mental checklist and prioritized them putting painted surfaces as highest, chrome second, interior as last. However, sitting in a clean environment--clean glass, clean carpet, and clean seats really improves the overall experience, so I made notes to do that as a minimum.
The day was just about perfect for working. Cloudy and overcast.
I gently watered down the finish with my pressure washer on low. If you'll note, I normally would tape off a car AFTER it's been washed, but in this case, there were lots of areas I didn't want water to be, so I used the tape to seal them off. In hindsight, a cloth bed sheet may have been a better solution. The tape worked well, but lost it's tackiness, not to mention held some water.
I sprayed on the NXT Car Wash on low
The front wheels were dirty, so some Wheel Brightener from the Detail Line solved that pretty easily. Ignore the sprayer bottle (APC), it's the correct product in the wrong sprayer bottle.
A couple quick blasts of water and you can see the results
Now they are sparkling
Here I am with my Makita
Progress being made. It was a lot of delicate work.
Notice the right side (left in this pic) is gradually getting glossier.
More Glossy
Ok Break time. By this time--11:30, I'd been buffing for 2-1/2 hours.
Started again at 12:30.
Arms were kinda tired, so I moved on to the side panels and saw these defects.
A little buffing later with the rotary. The green metallic flake is very visible here.
I went around the car, then back to the hood
From my mental checklist, I wanted to make the Chrome pop. The wheels were rusted, so I decided to claybar them, then use NXT Metal Polysh.
Sprayed some Quik Detailer for lubricant
Clay was effective at removing rust
M39 Heavy Duty Vinyl Cleaner worked great on the vinyl top. A nylon brush helped remove splatter residue from the rotary. Just make sure to keep M39 away from any waxed surfaces!
Nice reflective shot
Around 5:30PM Gerry stopped by to look at his car, and he actually joined me in finishing it up until about 8:45pm. We used ScratchX on a foam applicator pad to get all the areas that were too risky to do by machine. This worked great to remove any haze that couldn't be removed. This was topped off with M21 with a tan polishing pad and the PC.
Day Pix are coming....
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